TN looks to bounce back strongly against Tripura

Chennai, Oct 13 (PTI) Tamil Nadu will look to bounce back
strongly after a draw against Andhra Pradesh in the Ranji
Trophy Group "C" opener, when it takes on Tripura in the
second game, beginning at the M A Chidambaram Stadium here
tomorrow.

The fancied Tamil Nadu side came out second best in a
drawn game with the much-vaunted batting line-up not firing in
the first innings. A determined ton by B Sumanth helped Andhra
take the first innings lead and three points after being 64
for 5 at one stage.

Though the home side's batsmen made amends in the second
innings, Andhra came close to chasing down the target after a
declaration.

India Test stars Ravichandran Ashwin and Murali Vijay,
who had a mixed outing in the opening fixture, would be eager
to make a bigger contribution and help Tamil Nadu pick up
maximum points.

Ashwin was made to work hard for his wickets and he would
like to step up against Tripura, which doesn't boast of any
big names. Vijay after an injury scare, was his fluent self on
the final day with a half-century. He would be keen to get
among the runs in the lead-up to the Test series against the
visiting Sri Lankans.

Tamil Nadu coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar has emphasised on
the need to seize key moments and having to take it session by
session. Now the onus would be on the team to step up against
a light-weight opposition.

Tamil Nadu captain Abhinav Mukund, who found form with 95
in the second innings, told reporters ahead of the game that
the batsmen had to take responsibility and get a good score.

"We didn't bat well in the first innings, it was a big
talking point in our team meetings. As batsmen we need to take
responsibility and put a good total on the board to give a
chance to the bowlers to defend it," Mukund said.

He also said the experienced Dinesh Karthik, who was part
of the India team in the T20 series against Australia, would
be available for selection for the Tripura game.

Mukund also said he had full faith in the bowling attack
despite the tough time they had against Andhra.

The skipper said that they weren't taking Tripura lightly
and hoped to play its best.

"I don't take any team lightly. They have got a couple of
good pros.. Yashpal Singh is a seasoned player.

TN would be missing the services of Baba Aparajith, who
has been picked for the India "A" team for the ODIs against
New Zealand. He had a good outing against Andhra, scoring a
half-century and a ton.

All-rounder J Kousik would come in as his replacement.

Tripura captain Manisankar Mura Singh said the team was
looking forward to playing a strong team like Tamil Nadu.

"It is good to play against a big team. We have been
discussing their strengths and weaknesses. We have some
experienced players. It will be important to put up a big
score in the first innings as it will put them under
pressure," he said.